Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Give an expired coupon a second life: Bless a military family with savings!

Every month those of us who clip coupons have to go through our prized coupon stacks and purge those that no longer have the hope of becoming part of the next greatest coupon savings story. But, those coupons don't have to be whisked away in the next curb pick up, they can be sent to an overseas military family.

Many men and women stationed overseas don't have access to weekly newspaper coupons. However, military commissaries where they shop, accept manufacturer coupons and they can be up to 6 months expired!

If you'd like to give your coupons a second life and bless a military family with coupons savings, then start by dividing your manufacturer coupons into food and non-food items (most bases have a commissary for groceries and a P/X for non-grocery items). Place each of your separated coupons in a resealable plastic bag and label "grocery" or "non-grocery" on the front. Get a Priority Mail Envelope and stuff it full of your goodies. No store coupons. Since it takes a while for processing, it is recommended to keep the coupons sent not more than 2 months expired.

Then go to http://www.ocpnet.org/ and "adopt" a base you would like to send your coupons to. Make sure the base you would like to adopt is still accepting coupon donations. Filling out the adoption form before you send your coupons is optional, but it helps them to keep track of those donating. Happy couponing!